As much as I liked about Major League Baseball 2K11 (playing online and playing through My Player), I found even more that I didn't like (commentary, menus, bugs and glitches, frustrating AI). I enjoy the promise of the MLB integration, whether it's the updated scores every time I log into the game or the DRPS affecting my in-game roster and stats. But ultimately, MLB 2K11 is its own worst enemy, keeping it from being a great sports game and, once again, second fiddle to the MLB: The Show franchise.

This is the laziest console port I have ever seen. If you are a PC gamer trying to play a baseball game you can forget it. Besides theThis is the laziest console port I have ever seen. If you are a PC gamer trying to play a baseball game you can forget it. Besides the incredibly un-intuitive menu system, designed to utilize the limited inputs of a console controller, the 7+ level nested menu system makes finding what you want worse than trying to change settings on an (ancient) Nokia 3360. Imagine my chagrin as I tried to use my controller to find and change the keyboard settings. Once I got through all the nested submenus, I tried to remap the keys to, you know, match the actual layout of my controller. You see, 2k11 gives names to every key on the controller (just 1, 2, etc.) but it also has shapes. So when it suggests a key press and gives you a big pic of an "L2"-type key (think PS3) it could, and was, in my case, mapped to a different key. So fine, I fixed it after ignoring the visual cues the game gave me to press the wrong buttons. Then I played. Yeah, I could play a game. I could pitch OK, but obviously the gesture system is consolized. My controller didn't accurately give back the input the game. Maybe I have a crap controller but, u know what? I am a PC gamer. So I tried to use the mouse and keyboard. NOPE. As far as I know this isn't even possible in-game. So I never got very far besides a pathetic career mode giving out hits left and right because I couldn't make the slider gesture correctly. Is this my fault? perhaps. I tell you what, in MY day, Ken Griffey Jr's Winning Run didn't need 'gestures' to be fun…Full Review »

Played both 2K9 and 2K10 and this is a huge improvement over both. I guess I can *kind of* see where people are getting the "it's the samePlayed both 2K9 and 2K10 and this is a huge improvement over both. I guess I can *kind of* see where people are getting the "it's the same game as last year" thing, but that comment isn't exactly right. All of the controls are the same, so if you've played 2K10, you can pick this one right up and go. The announcers are the same, but they were a highlight anyway. The presentation has gotten a moderate overhaul for the better. Graphically, on the PC at least, the game is a giant leap from last year's installment. I like that the generic player faces are MUCH more varied this time around, and there aren't as many odd-sounding first name, surname combinations. There also don't seem to be as many "minor league lifers" in your farm system. They prospects seem more age-appropriate now. Fielding is a HUGE improvement over last year. There are definitely throwing errors if you're not careful with the throwing meter. Lower-rated fielders will bobble the ball or boot it away. There are also balls thrown in the dirt to first base, which is a great touch, and the double play turns seem more fluid. There seem to be a ton more animations in the fielding department, and it makes the game feel much more like "real" baseball.

As it has been pointed out by others, the unique batter routines at the plate are well-done, and there seem to be many more unique stances and routines (no Joey Votto, though, which is weird but not a big deal to me). Base stealing seems to be about the same as last year, but with a higher success rate. The nice thing is that you can actually nail an opposing runner, which never happened last year. They also seem to have overhauled the injury system, so that they are more common now, and more varied in severity. I turned down the frequency though, because it's almost ridiculous how often they happen now.

In all, I actually feel like I'm taking part in a baseball game in 2K11, whereas 2K10 felt very "gamey." There are still some bugs, and I haven't tried My Player mode, but from a first playthrough of about 8 hours, I'd say the issues this year are far less heinous when compared to the great game 2K put out. Pros:
Errors, Injuries are handled *MUCH* more realistically this time around
Batting, Pitching and Fielding controls feel familiar and lend themselves to fluid play.
Much improved graphically (on PC)
Great presentation
More realistic fan and player interactions
Better camera angles after a ball is put in pay
5-star potential rating system is much more informative than last year's potential rating system

Cons:
Still some bugs (two I noticed: One Spring Training game, I was playing the Brewers as the Giants, and they came out in another team's uniform, and I came out in Rays uniforms. A save and re-start fixed it. Weird. I also had a homerun ball by Pat Burrell snagged by Andre Ethier at the wall, but the game still counted it as a homerun. I've also heard of various other bugs but have not experienced them on the PC.)
Still no spray charts for batters
Still no minor league prospects (all fake names - I realize this is a licensing issue, but it'd be nice)
A couple strange animations (but overall much better)
Outfielders still are apathetic about getting the ball back to the cut-off man
GM AI is still pretty stupid. I always make it a point to trade away Barry Zito, and I was able to get the Rays to trade me Jeremy Hellickson and two prospects for Zito and Nate Schierholtz.

I think once some of the bugs get ironed out, this game is a potential 10/10. For now, I'd say it's definitely worth the $30. It's a big iprovement over last year if only because it just "feels" more like baseball (more realistic fielding animations, errors and injuries went a long way to help).…Full Review »

The actual mean of the user score is really unfair for this game. Yes, needs an Xbox controller to be played properly, but this cannot beThe actual mean of the user score is really unfair for this game. Yes, needs an Xbox controller to be played properly, but this cannot be considered a fault imho, since the control system is well made and responsive. At the All Star difficulty level it also offers a good challenge, and it has much game modes to play with as My Player or a full MLB season with Drafts, Trades and all the stuff you can ask to a good baseball game. The graphic on PC is also very good, and you can install mods to make it even better.…Full Review »